SPRING The World Ends With
by luap911
Summary: A fanfiction based upon the universe of The World Ends With You.  Instead of taking place in Shibuya, this story follows the events of the Reaper's Game in Seattle, WA.
1. Chapter I

**DISCLAIMER: **I do not own any of the story elements, properties, characters, or concepts from the video game series_ The World Ends With You._ Further, I do not own any of the music mentioned either. Credit goes too each respective owner.

**A/N:** There's perspective shifts, separated by a horizontal ruler and introduced by the characters name in bold. Also, there is music mentioned that I hope you listen to while reading. Because links unfortunately don't work with (*creys*), you will have to find them yourselves- each song should just be a simple google away.

Now, enjoy the story!

* * *

><p><strong>CHAPTER I<strong>

_( Music: Statues, by Foo Fighters)_

**Darren Bounds**

_Click._

The gun, pointed at me. I was betrayed by my so-called friends. Assholes, that's what they are. Together we could of beat this guy's games, but instead they hand me over to him. When I needed them most, they turn on me for cash.

"You gunna pay me boy? O' is you bein' shot in the head?"

I looked him straight in the eye. He cheated me first. I cheated him back. Now, the money is gone, and I'm going to die. "The money is gone. Spent. You're not getting paid. I'm sorry, Rich. I had no other choice..." He set his finger on the trigger and pulled back a bit. "Killing me won't get you your money. You're the one who gave me the fake-"

"O', do I care? Darren, you a dead man."

I wouldn't die without a fight. _BANG! _Pushing everyone who held me off, I barely escaped the bullet. Instead it hit the man behind me, right between his eyes. Chris. I used to call him best friend. When he grabbed me, he was dirt. Now, he's dead. Looking at his dead, limp, body fall to the ground, everything slowed down.

"Git 'em!" Reality hit back, and I looked to the gun that was in Chris's hand. I jumped to him, slamming my body on the ground. _BANG! BANG! BANG! _Grabbing the gun, I looked at Rich.

Our eyes locked. "I won't die!" I yelled. Aiming our guns at each other, we pulled the triggers. _BANG! _The guns shot in unison.

The bullet touched my forehead. _No. No. I__t's over. _It broke the skin. Then, the skull. _My head! __OH MY GOD, MY HEAD. __IT HURTS! _Then, the bullet started the push through my brain. _I DON'T WANT TO DIE. _I noticed Rich falling backwards, blood coming out of his head. _...I got 'em._

Then there was nothing.

* * *

><p><strong>Grey Ruffner<strong>

"How was school today?"

My little brother looked up at me excited. I knew he was waiting for me to ask. He loved telling about what he learned at school. So eager to learn. "Really fun! We were learning about bugs and stuff. Did you know a spider isn't an insect?"

"No," I lied. "What are they, then?"

"Arach... arachn... I forgot." His cheeks flushed. I chuckled. "Don't laugh at me Grey!"

"Maybe we can look it up when we get home-"

_HONK!_

The horn of a car blared from behind. I turned around, seeing the car driving on the sidewalk. It was going fast. Too many cars were passing in the street, and to our right was only a wall. _Nowhere to go._

I grabbed my brother, hoping to jump into traffic with him. This road's speed limit was twenty miles per hour, the car on the sidewalk was going at least twice that. If we get hit, the traffic we could survive...

But there was no time. As I pushed off the ground, the car hit us. For a split second, I saw the driver's face behind the windshield. He was horror-struck. I felt myself land on the ground ahead of the car. For a moment there was great pain, then in the next I was numb.

I saw my brother in the air above. There was red all over him. Blood. _This... this isn't happening. _My head fell to the side where the car was still coming, and I saw it swerving out of control. As my vision blurred, I saw the car hit the wall, and the driver come flying through the glass, his body smashing, being obliterated, by the wall. The back of the car swung out, and the last thing I saw was the back tire rushing toward me.

* * *

><p><strong>Carolin Foy<strong>

"She's gonna jump!"

"Don't do it!"

"You have your whole life ahead of you!"

Today was cold. Windy. With a chance of rain. Normal day for Seattle in early spring. From the top of this building, everything seemed more intense. The wind was faster, and it pushed the rain into me harder. But, that's not what made it colder. Fear. Fear is what is making me shiver.

"It's not worth it!"

_None of them understand._

I pulled a rock I had grabbed out of my pocket. It was just a small pebble that I grabbed from the ground. Then, I dropped it over the ledge. I didn't hear it hit the ground. Four-hundred-fifty feet, thirty-six floors. So high. From here, there'd be no chance of survival if someone fell... or jumped.

"Carolin! Don't do it!" The voice was from behind.

I turned around. _Matthew. _"No!" I screamed. But it was too late, he got too close. _BANG! _The bullet went though his back and out his chest. He stumbled forward, and screamed in agony. And he fell forward, no time to catch his balance, and went right off the edge.

I watched him fall. Three seconds, then he hit the ground. I looked away before I could see him hit the ground, but unlike the pebble, I heard him hit. I felt myself start to cry. This isn't how this it's all supposed to end.

The crowd screamed. I could see scattered material on the cement. Blood and flesh, everywhere.

"Someone else is up there, clear the area!" Cops started to push the crowd away. A helicopter flew up from behind a building. "She's being held hostage!" a voice from the helicopter boomed.

My captor came out from where he was hiding. He kept his gun pointed on me, so I dared not move. Grabbing me from behind, he put the gun to my temple. "Don't move," he whispered into my ear. Then he yelled out: "Give me what I want, or she dies!"

_I can't let him get away with this..._

Grabbing his arms and wrapping my leg around his, I leaned forward. "Wait- what?" he yelled in panic. We fell from the building.

I let go of him. The air rushed by. I couldn't help but think, _Why? _I didn't want to die, I just wanted to stop him... but I wanted to stop him more. A lot happened in this three second fall.

_SLAM! _His body. Their screams: "Aaaaaaaah-" Silence.

* * *

><p><em>( Music: Vagabond, by The Classic Crime)<em>

**Composer**

_ I can't get enough  
><em>_of livin' in the city _

The bus wasn't as crowded as usual. Peering out the window, I saw the sun rising. Around this time of day people would be heading to work. _Maybe it's a holiday._ Yawning, I pull the wire to signal the driver I wanted the next stop.

_ Vagabonds and troubadours  
><em>_I built this city on punk rock chords _

I popped a piece of gum into my mouth. Minty. Then, standing up, holding the rails to keep balance in the moving vehicle, I made my way to the backdoor. The bus came to a stop. "Have a nice day, miss," I could hear the bus driver call, despite my earphones blaring music. I yelled back my thanks, then stepped off.

_ In the jet city of love  
><em>_Northwest in the evergreen state  
>People can't get enough<br>Of livin' in the darkness and the rain  
>But when the sun comes out<br>The streets are filled with songs  
>And people playin' it loud<br>So the whole world can sing along, yeah! _

I took out my earphones and listened. "Spring," I said with a smile. In the distance I could hear the strumming of a guitar and the beating on something.

I was at the 2nd and Pike intersection.

Down Pike Street, I could see the large _Public Market Center _sign. I chuckled, "Buskers. Wonderful people."

_beep._

_beep._

I pulled out my phone and stared at it for a moment. _We have enough players..._ I typed up the message and pressed send.

* * *

><p><em>( The Ice Is Getting Thinner, by Death Cab for Cutie)<em>

**?**

_beep._

_beep._

"Who the hell is texting me at five in the morning." I reached for the nightstand looking for my phone, then remembered last night's events. The memories hit hard.

"Carolin..." My only sister, dead.

I pulled the text up on my phone.

"REAPER MAIL

A new game starts tomorrow.  
>Report to Conductor before 6 p.m.<br>tonight.

Failure to comply will result in  
>erasure.<p>

-GM, Fiend"

I pushed my blankets off me. _Another Game... and now of all times. _Getting off the bed, I tried to put my thoughts away from Carolin. _If I have to do another Game, I have to try to keep my mind off her.__I can't let myself slip-up.__Not now._

_beep._

I opened up the new message.

"P.S. Norman, meet with the  
>Composer first. She wants to speak to<br>you about one of the new  
>Players."<p> 


	2. Chapter II

**CHAPTER II**

_(Music: Seattle, by The Classic Crime)_

**Conductor**

My emotions were mixed when I got the Composer's message. Happy, because it confirmed she wasn't dead. Sad, because it meant an end to a long break that was very prosperous for me. Angry, because the Game was starting so soon without an warning. And confused, because her plan was obvious. The timing is perfect. But what does this mean for us? Us, who have done everything instructed. Surely, we must _reap_ some of the benefits too.

_Is our freedom never to be?_

I looked up at the Space Needle. Groups of people were pushing their ways passed me. The Science Center is showing off a new physics exhibit, admission half-off. I refunded my tickets just a moment ago. It was disappointing, I hadn't gone for a long time and I absolutely loved the place. But I can't go. _The Game is more important. This time, I can't slack. If I want to get out, I have to give this one my all._

The transition was smooth. From RG to UG, I couldn't barely feel the shift. Someone gasped at the fact that they saw a man disappear into thin air. But no one would believe him. _Have to go now. The meeting place. The River._

"What little joy we have when we play their games."

The walk took under an hour. Once I arrived at the north end of the Aurora Bridge, I headed down to the Fremont Troll. A family was there, and kids were clambering there way up the Troll, trying to get as high as they could so their parents could take a picture. This was scene you see a lot around here.

Perhaps the most uncommon event is the one that was about to unfold. The entrance to the Meeting Place, here, behind the Troll, being opened after all this time. It's only visible in the Underground, because in the Real Ground is doesn't exist. Two different planes of existence; in the UG we can see everything as it happens in the RG, but not the other way around. This family gathering around the Fremont Troll is utterly oblivious to my presence.

And so with a use of a pin, the entrance appeared before me, and I entered the meeting place.

It was a small, square room. Three couches surrounding a coffee table in the middle. The walls were black, with a white stripe circling the whole room. One the far wall were three doors, labeled _Composer_, _Conductor, _and _GM_, from left to right respectively. In the corner to the right of me was a water cooler, and a small table next to it with clear plastic cups.

I got some water and then sat on the couch facing the entrance, waiting to meet all the Reapers.

* * *

><p><strong>Composer<strong>

The Composer's room was the largest in Seattle's River. Like a throne room, it was long, extending well over two-hundred feet long. Elegant shapes covered the walls, follow no particular pattern. Every shape was a different color than any of the other shapes it touched. Most of the colors were darker shades, but there were some bright yellow ovals scattered. This room was built just over two decades ago, whoever was Composer then must have had odd taste. I stare at the shapes sometimes when I'm worried or something is on my mind; I can make out strange pictures combining the shapes, and I wonder if some of them were intentional. Or maybe it's just my mind, forcing itself to create these pictures, for whenever I find a new one, it's never irrelevant. It always is something that taunts me. Then, when I stop caring about the issue, the picture disappears. A lot of the time I forget what the picture originally was.

Sitting in my "throne", a metal fold-up chair, I looked at the newest picture I've found. A broken cross, the bottom half lit on fire, and the top half falling to the flames. At first I was aghast, but then I was intrigued by how I'd never noticed it before. I studied the shapes. Then it was gone. The picture didn't exist. The shapes were still there, but I couldn't put them into a picture any longer. What even was the picture?

There was a knock at the door. "Come in," I called, my voice echoing off the walls. Besides for me and my chair, the room was completely empty.

He entered quietly, then walked down the long hall toward me. "Norman," I greeted.

"Ma'am."

There was tension between us. Norman has been a Reaper the longest of all of us. He just hasn't climbed the ranks. There has to be a reason...

...but that's not why he's here.

"I assume you've figured it out: the reason you're here."

"Yes." His voice was dark, angry and yet sad.

"I will allow you to sit this Game out, if you want. Very few Players make it out-" Of course, he knew this, since he's been the one to kill most. "I won't make you stick around to see her die."

"Make me GM."

…_"Oh?"_

* * *

><p><em>(Music: Dumb, by Nirvana)<em>

**Darren Bounds**

_My head...  
><em>_...this pain...  
><em>...where am I?<em>_

The migraine pulled me from my sleep. I grabbed my head, moaning. "Dammit!" I yelled. Instinctively I curled up into a ball on the ground. _Why does my head hurt so much?_

_bang... bang... BANG!_

The sounds echoed in my head. Gunshots from the day before. Rich had given me the fake coke. I had no choice but to pay the money back, otherwise I'd of been killed. Then Rich got me... _We both got each other, didn't we?_

I opened my eyes. Everything in every direction was just a bright white light. _Is this death?_ I tried to get up, but my headache made me too dizzy to move.

"Got a headache?"

With some jerky movements, I was able to shift my body around. A man with stood there. He was just looking at me. And smiling. Of course he was smiling. "Who... are you?" I asked weakly.

"This Game's Conductor: Quark."

"...Game?"

"Ugh, you're no use like this." He snapped his fingers and the pain in my head grew more intense. I screamed, and my vision blurred. Then just a moment later, there was no pain in my head at all. Something clattered to the ground in front of me. I stared at it. A bullet. I touched my forehead with the tips of my fingers. There was a small wound. "Feel better?" With the pain gone from my head, the rest of my body started to feel gradually less weak. Then, at last, there was no pain at all, but there was an uncomfortable feeling on the surface of my forehead; the wound was dried and hard.

"I guess," I said, getting to my feet. I studied Quark. He wore all black, his shirt was loose with long sleeves and his jeans tight. His hair was light brown and his eyes blue. The most distinguishable feature about him was the tattoos on his neck. "What did you do?" I asked.

"Made you suitable for play."

"Meaning?"

"Can't let the Player play if they aren't in the condition to. It's standard procedure to fix their wounds- to an extent, anyways. That hole in your head will stay; think of it as a little reminder, so you know that this is all real. You're dead, Mr. Bounds. But you held onto life and were able to not fall out of this plane of existence: the UG, Underground. So now you have two options: A) play the Reaper's Game, for a second chance at life, or B) be Erased."

_What._ I backed up, just staring. "You have to be..." _joking. No... _I touched the bullet hole on my forehead. _This is real. _I let out an awkward laugh. "Well, this is just damn insane."

"'Damn insane,' indeed." Quark smiled devilishly.

"And what exactly is this game?"

"Every day, for a week, you complete the missions assigned. Die during the mission, you stay dead. Don't complete the day's mission within the time limit, you're erased."

_Simple enough. I'd be a joke if I think it's easy though. _"Is that it?"

"Once last thing; there is an entry fee. To compete, the thing most important to you will be taken away. Win the game, you get it back."

**Grey Ruffner**

_Tory...  
><em>_...I didn't keep you safe...  
><em>...I failed you.<em>_

I was in extreme pain, and I could feel the wetness of blood all over me. My mouth was open, I think I was screaming. Then, the pain started to fade, and I heard someone speaking. But the words being said were incoherent to me. I could hear them, I knew the language they spoke, but I couldn't understand. They became more clear though, as the pain faded. At last, when the pain was gone, I understood one complete sentence: "Stand up."

Opening my eyes was easy, keeping them open was hard. There was a bright light coming from all directions. Squinting, I did make out the shape of someone. "Stand up," he repeated to me. I tried, but I couldn't orient myself properly. The man sighed, then snapped. In a single instance my eyes adjusted to the light and my thoughts cleared. I stood up and got a good look at him.

The man wore all black, and had an odd, wide smile. "Hello, erm," he held a cell phone up and looked at it, "uh, Grey Ruffner, is it?" He offered me a hand shake, which I cautiously took. "My name is Quark; Conductor of this unruly game. And you've just won the chance of a _life_time."

I let go of his hand and took a step back. My leg felt uncomfortable walking. It felt like the skin on my thigh was broken, but there was no pain. "What do you mean?" I asked. "Where is this?" Then the memories. "And Tory, where is he?"

"Unlike you, he survived the initial incident. But right now he's in a hospital, slowly dying." My heart skipped a beat.

_He's dying?_

_And I'm dead?_

"But, you can save him. And yourself. Play the Reaper's Game."

When you're told you're dead, and you feel alive, you might doubt any of it is true. But I knew. _This is real._ "Tell me what to do."

He explained; He told me what the Reaper's Game was. I could come back to life if I played it. "And lastly, there's the entry fee. Whatever is most important to you will be taken away. In your case, it's your brother. He'll disappear from the RG and be trapped somewhere in the UG. The thing is, since we cannot let your entry fee be destroyed before you die during the game, he will be healed to near-perfect conditions. Win the game, and along with your new life, he will be revived."

_We'll go on together._ "I'll play," I said. "A week isn't too long."

* * *

><p><strong>Carolin Foy<strong>

What this man was telling me... it's insane. But it's the truth. I already knew. I've known this game has existed for a long time, but under the impression it was just a story. _Norman, you ass._

"I'll play, Quark."

He clapped his hands together. "Great! Catch." His hand moved and something small came toward my way. I caught it. It was a pin that had a small skull design on it. I recognized it from somewhere.

"It's your Player Pin," Quark said. "It'll come in handy, I promise you that."

There was a flash of white, and then I found myself in the middle of the street. Cars were coming from both directions. I flinched and hid my face in my hands, and then... nothing. The cars passed right through me, didn't hurt me at all. _I'm in the UG._

It was day and the city was busy as usual. At least I knew where I was, 1st Ave. and Pike. _Gotta find a partner._ I took off running._ Someone else has to be playing too._ "Who else is playing this game?" I called out. No one reacted. No one around was also in the UG.

**BZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ**

I tripped, then stumbled the ground. My hand felt like it was on fire. I shook my hand by reflex, then noticed the red numbers on the palm of my hand. The pain was gone, and the timer was running. 40:00. 39:59. 39:58. 39:57. 39:56. 39:55. _I only have forty minutes. _I pulled out my phone, there was a message waiting.

"PLAYER MAIL

Day 1's mission:

Go the Space Needle. Stay  
>in the designated area until<br>time runs out."


	3. Chapter III

**CHAPTER III**

_(Music: Bury Me With It, by Modest Mouse)_

**GM, Fiend**

I leaned back in my chair. I've sent the mission, The Game had started. Now, I get to relax. Once the time is up, I'll introduce myself to the surviving Players. Congratulate them. Then crush their hopes; make them wish they'd of died in the first place. I felt myself start to doze off.

_Knock. Knock._

"Ugh," I groaned. "Come in!"

The door opened and I immediately sat up. "Norman? Why are _you _here? The Game's started-"

"I know, that's why this visit has to be quick. Rarely are promotions given to Reapers during the Game." He reached into his pocket and pulled out a wrinkled post-it note. "'By order of the Composer, Fiend is relieved of GM duties-'" he paused, smiling at me. "Don't look so angry."

"You- you bastard!" I jumped from my chair and ran at Norman. "I worked my ass off to get to where I am! You think you can take this away from me!" I punched at Norman, but he sidestepped and grabbed my arm.

Chuckling he said, "You're receiving a promotion." Puzzled, I just stared, waiting for an explanation. The only positions about GM are Conductor and Composer, and I had just met with them, they're alive and well. "We're equals now, Mixer."

_Mixer? _"A new position?"

"Not necessarily; this position just isn't required for the Game to play out. You should feel honored that you get to fill it, the first in 500 years." Letting go of my hand, he shuffled behind me then took my seat. "A new room will form, it's yours to take. I will be taking this one."

I stepped outside the door and a new door was coming into existence between the GM and Conductor's doors. The title "Mixer" appeared above the door frame. "What exactly does the Mixer do?"

Norman came out of the GM room. "Whatever they so wish. _Mix _the Game up a little."

* * *

><p><strong>Darren Bounds<strong>

The monsters closed in. _Noise. That's what Quark called them. They can be destroyed, but I don't have any hope without a partner. They'll just keep coming._ Backing into the brick wall of a building, I looked at the alley to my left. Three Noise blocked that path. I reached into my pocket and pulled out three of the pins that appeared there when the Game started. _One of these has to work._

I grabbed the Player Pin and two others, one with a picture of an iceberg and another with a picture of dirt rising from the ground. Focusing on the pin with the iceberg, I stared at the three Noise blocking the alley. For the first few moments nothing happened, then in a spectacular flash ice came into existence around the Noise, freezing them into place. _Hell yeah!_ As a catlike Noise pounced at me, I ran at full speed toward the alley. By just an inch the Noise missed me.

_**THUD!**_

Someone ran straight into me as I turned into the alley and we both fell back on our asses. I was angry, _Watch where you're going! _Scared, _The Noise are gonna get me. _Then relieved, as I realized the obvious, _This has to be another Player!_

"Make a pact, quick!" The voice was raspy, older, a middle aged man. Noise were closing in from both sides of the alley. Grabbing the man's hand, the world around me shifted, the air around us was pulsation. Then the sensation stopped and all the Noise halted in their place; they backed off. We helped each other to our feet.

I burst out laughing. Then tension was great just a few moments ago, and now everything was fine. Another Player; a partner. Looking at my new partner, I evaluated him. He wore sweats and a black t-shirt. All his clothes were stained, and his hair was oily. There was a faint smell of alcohol coming from him. _Homeless. Alcoholic. No matter. Still have to trust him._

Leaning on the wall I said, "We're golden." I held out my hand to shake his. "I'm Darren." He stared at my hand for a moment, but didn't shake back, instead he looked up at my head, but not into my eyes... Silent, I put my hand back to my side. I realized he was staring at my bullet hole.

He turned around, looking in the direction of the Space Needle. Looking at the timer in his palm he said, "Let's go. We only have thirty minutes." Then he started walking.

I ran after him. "We're stuck together for a week; you can tell me your name."

"No."

"Why?" _Unreasonable..._

"There's no reason for you to know."

"It's hard to trust someone that is a mystery."

"Don't trust me by me then; trust me by that I trust you."

"You trust me?"

"You seem honest enough."

It didn't take long before we were just one block away from the Space Needle. We still had fifteen minutes to spare. I gazed around, wondering if any other players were arriving as well. There was no one.

"It'd seem that everyone else faced greater threats," my partner said. "Or maybe, they couldn't find a partner. Taken by the Noise."

"Maybe we're just earl-" I ran straight into a wall. But there was no wall to see. Recoiling from the shock, I backed up and just stared. I felt the wall with my hands and followed it. It was solid, invisible but still solid. There was no going around. "We're so close! How do we-" I noticed a man to the right, leaning on the invisible wall.

My partner answered echoed my thoughts. "A Reaper."

The Reaper noticed us. He was smiling, laughing at us. "It's always fun to see an idiot Player run into a Wall for their first time! The look on your face- hilarious!"

"You placed this here," I accused, "you're sabotaging the Game!"

"Not sabotaging; that'd be against the rules. I'm just doing my job." He stood up and walked towards us. "To clear the wall, you must clear the objective." Noise phased into existence all over the street. "Eliminate the Noise."

I looked around. Tens of dozens of Noise. Nothing else to do but either- "Fight or die," my partner said, pulling out a pin from his pocket. A car parked to the left of me lifted from ground into the air, rising high above use. Then it dashed forward and toward the ground, crashing into the Noise, destroying each one in it's path. Some dodged, and I saw the perfect chance to help. Using the iceberg pin I froze the Noise in the car's path.

* * *

><p><strong>Grey Ruffner<strong>

The objective, easy; the Noise, not as difficult as I'd of thought. The real goal today was to find a partner. So I headed straight to the Space Needle. Everyone would head there in the end, so I'd find a partner then. With ten minutes left on the the timer, I found myself looking straight up at the Space Needle. One thing was obvious; there was conflict some ways away. The strange sounds of what I assume were Noise and two human voices, although I couldn't quite tell what they were saying.

Another voice came, yelling to my from behind. "Wait!" I turned around. A girl was running up the street. A mob of Noise chasing from behind. Water and, less often, lightning shot down at the Noise, slowing them down.

I ran straight towards her. _A Player. Someone to make a pact._ I looked at the Noise behind her. If they overtake her before we make a pact, then I'm dooming myself by getting close. I make it, we both live; I don't, we both die. A large purple bear-like Noise jumped up above the other Noise and straight at her.

"No!" I yelled. The Noise landed on her, in just a few moments she'd be torn to pieces. Then they'd get us. We won't live, I can't save us, because there's no way I can save her. _We're going to die, Tory._

Piercing sound hit my ears. Shrieking. Not her scream though. The bear-Noise. Something had shot through its side. Next, a gust of wind hit the bear-Noise, knocking it off the girl. A person ran out of a side road and to the girl. The Noise was about to overcome them, so I pulled out my next pin, with a picture of flame on it, and used it.

A wall of flame appeared between the girl and the other, separating them from the Noise. The other person grabbed the girl's hand and they made a pact. _I still have no partner._ Despite that I should be hurrying to find someone else, I approached them.

I felt the hate growing inside me. My would-be partner was stolen. The girl looked at me and said, "Thank you- um, I'm Carolin." But I was looking at her partner.

"Grey."

Her partner was also a girl. "Heather." She stepped back some steps. "Look, I'm sorry, but I don't plan on dying out here."

"Right. I don't either." I turned and left back toward the Space Needle. My time said 4:30. Time was running out. My walk turned into a sprint. I approached what I assumed to be the designated area, which was marked with four stickers with a similar style of art to the Player pins. 3:45. I saw two men rushing toward the designated area. I ignored them, and kept searching for someone else. But there wasn't any. _No one._ 3:00.

"HELP!" It was the voice of a boy, and I turned in the direction I heard it come from. I noticed Carolin, who was getting into the designated area, pause in shock. I dashed in the direction of the voice. "The Noise!" 2:30. _Faster, faster, faster. _Turning a corner, I ran into an alley. I saw someone else, about my age, running from a mob of Noise.

"This way!" I called.

He noticed me, but the Noise had already flooded into the alley, so he ran past. The group split up, I had become their next target. "Run down the next street," he called to me. 1:15. I did what he said, and turned onto the next street. 1:00. _We won't have enough time to get back. _We ran at each other, then grabbed hands. Immediately a pact was made. The Noise went still. 0:45. "My name's-"

"Introductions later- run!" We ran back from where I came. 0:30. I pushed on, my brow started to sweat. 0:20. My partner was barely keeping up, he was stumbling some, but he didn't fall behind. 0:10. The designated area was in sight. Carolin, Heather, and two others were waiting. 0:08. "Hurry!" 0:05. Just a few more steps. 0:03. 0:02. I dove. 0:01. 0:00.

* * *

><p><strong>Carolin Foy<strong>

_He's here too. Matthew. _0:03. 0:02. Matthew and Grey dove for the goal. 0:01. They weren't inside. They lost. 0:00. The timer disappeared from my palm. We weren't outside the Space Needle anymore. This was the white place from earlier, where I met Quark.

The only other with me was Heather. "So I guess we wade out here for now; might as well lay down," she said, then suddenly fell backward, landing with a thud. I reacted in shock, thinking that'd of hurt, but Heather just looked up into the white nothingness. I got onto the floor and sat up with my legs crossed.

"I doubt we'll be here long," I said.

"Maybe. Maybe I'll wake before then. I hope so. This dream isn't a very wonderful one."

I wondered if she really believed this was fake. "Dream?"

"Yeah. There's no way this could be real."

"Of course, all a dream," a voice echoed. Then it laughed. "Oh, Heather, this must be fake, there's no way you'd of been killed the way you did." I knew the voice from somewhere. "Ugh- I sound too much like Quark, antagonizing you."

_No. Not him._

Norman appeared in front of me, looking down on us. "Hey, Care, you're doing pretty well to have made it passed the first day."

Heather sat up. "You know him?" she asked.

"My brother." A lump grew in my throat. I assumed Norman must of been a Player at one time. He's disappeared before, more than once. One of those times, I thought, he'd of been in some sort of accident. And so he told me those stories about what it was like in the Underground. But he helps work this place. "You're one of them, a Reaper." I stood up and faced Norman. "How- Why? Norman-"

"I go by Common here." He frowned. "Not everything is under someone's control. I'm sorry, Care; just know that if anyone does survive all seven days, I hope it's you."

Heather jumped to her feet. "You're the GM, aren't you?"

"GM?" I asked.

Norman looked down. "The Game Master. I decide everything for this game." Then raising his head to look at me he said, "I am the enemy. On Day 7, the final mission is always the same: defeat the GM."

"You or me," I said.

"I've been at this business for years, but this is my first time as GM. I've eliminated Players, there's too much blood on my hands. I deserve to die. but I don't plan to.. I don't plan on killing you either." Norman stepped away from us. "I'm almost out of time, I can only talk for a few more seconds."

"Fine- but you have a plan? You don't plan on either of us dying, so you have to have a way out, right?"

Heather spoke out, "He only said he doesn't plan on killing you. He plans on you dying before Day 7."

I looked to Norman for answers but he didn't supply any. He just turned away, threw something to me, and then disappeared. Heather and I stood in the white place, a blank pin in my lap.

* * *

><p><strong>Grey Ruffner<strong>

Matthew and I stood in the white place. Common had already left, alerting us of how the rest of Game would play out and why we survived, despite not making it to the designated area. Only one team has to complete the mission for all the surviving teams to pass to the next day.

We talked for some time; there was something we had in common: there was someone we each know that is trapped in this Game. Neither we expected to see.

For Matthew it was Carolin. He told me how he died, trying to stop her from killing herself. But it was all a ruse, she was kidnapped, and when he got to the top of the building, he was shot, lost his footing, and stumbled off the building to his death.

"When I woke up here, it was all I could think of," he'd told me. "I wanted to know if she was alright, if she survived. I hoped she did. I tried to find out from Quark, but he only laughed in my face. During today's mission, I found a newspaper, and found out she fell from the building, but took she kidnapper down with her. She killed herself to stop him. Now that I know she's here, though, I want to make sure she makes it back. I won't do anything stupid; I'm not going to get you condemned so I can save her, but I'm will do what's within my power."

For me, I didn't know how to react. It wasn't a friend, someone that'd I try to get out alive. It was the man who killed me and almost- no, not almost, if I die he's dead, if I live he lives. This man killed me and my brother.

"We'll figure this all out," Matthew assured me. "Even if that guy killed you, to get rid of him will be to kill Darren. He didn't do anything to no one."

_Right._ I thought. _But I want to kill him. I want to see him dead, sprawled on the ground, covered in the blood I'll make him shed._


End file.
